Here are the stories that received the most attention in Week six of 2015.
5 Police, firefighters investigate potentially hazardous Fort William Road crash
A 22-year-old fuel-truck driver was taken to hospital with minor injuries Thursday night after crashing into a concrete pole and winding up in a ditch along Fort William Road.
Police and fire crews have blocked off Fort William Road across from Thunder Centre, as well as a portion of Isabel Street.
Police say they were faced with a "considerable mess of diesel fuel and vehicle fluids."
In a release issued on Friday morning, police said the fuel-truck's cargo was offloaded to another vehicle before the wreckage was taken away, though it appeared the cargo container remained intact.
"The truck appears to be demolished," said traffic Sgt. Glenn Porter. "Clean-up work is complete, but the odour of diesel fuel may be noticed in the area."
THUNDER BAY -- Georjann Morriseau has stepped out of the race just one month after declaring her intent to enter federal politics.
The chief of Fort William First Nation confirmed on Saturday that she is withdrawing her bid in the Liberal nomination race in the Thunder Bay-Rainy River riding.
Morriseau originally broke the news through a Facebook post shared earlier in the morning where she said she had decided to abandon the pursuit after an overwhelming response from her community, urging her to reconsider and launch a re-election campaign as chief.
In an interview Morriseau said she intended to seek a second term as chief in their elections, which will be held in April.
“With the response from everybody saying to stay here at Fort William, continue to be dedicated and finish what you started, that’s what I’m here to do,” she said. “I’m looking to continue the great work we’ve started in the last two years. I look to take that to the next level with our community and if they want me there, I’ll be there for them.”
3 City says no to CN's final offer to reopen James Street Swing Bridge
THUNDER BAY -- The city is heading to court over the James Street swing bridge.
CN's latest offer to get the bridge open to vehicle traffic was unanimously rejected by city council Monday night. They'll now ask a judge to determine the validity of the 1906 agreement between the city and CN, at the time the town of Fort William and the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, that said the company would maintain the bridge in perpetuity.
The latest offer would've seen the bridge alternate one-way traffic between trains and vehicles. The 1906 agreement would have been terminated and Fort William First Nation would've had to give up any current or future land claims with CN, something mayor Keith Hobbs said the city couldn't and shouldn't do even if it could.
"We signed the 2011 declaration of commitment to work along side (Fort William First Nation), not screw them over so that was a poison pill for sure that CN threw in that agreement," Hobbs said.
2 Officer charged with impaired driving following crash investigation
THUNDER BAY -- A city police officer has been charged with impaired driving following a single-vehicle crash earlier this month.
Thunder Bay Police Service officials on Monday confirmed that the officer had been charged following an alleged Feb. 2 pickup truck crash on Balmoral Street. The truck, owned by the officer, had crashed into a ditch on Balmoral Street south of Alloy Drive just before 1:30 a.m.
An investigation by uniform patrol officers led to charges against the officer. He was off duty at the time of the incident. The officer sustained only minor injuries.
Christopher George Toneguzzi, 32, has been charged with impaired operation of a motor vehicle and driving with over 80 mgs of alcohol.
He has a court date of February 27, 2015. None of the charges against the accused have been tested in court.
1 Three seriously injured following crash at Arthur Street near Mapleward Road
The crash occurred around 8:15 a.m. just east of Mapleward Road near the West Thunder Community Centre.
Thunder Bay Police Service traffic Sgt. Glenn Porter said a Honda Civic and Jeep SUV collided head-on and the two 24-year-old female drivers and a 44-year-old female passenger in the SUV were all taken to the Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre.
"We know the injuries are serious. I'm just not quite sure how serious," said Porter. Police closed Arthur Street from Parkdale Boulevard to Mapleward Road for most of the day. It has since reopened to traffic.
Both vehicles sustained heavy damage and Porter confirmed the two women in the Jeep needed to be extricated from the van by Thunder Bay Fire Rescue.
